Archive for the ‘Chevrolet 210’ tag

When it comes to station wagons, there’s a very fine line between too little and too much customization. After all, in the postwar years station wagons were generally utilitarian vehicles, tasked with hauling the family. This 1957 Chevrolet 210 Station Wagon for sale on Hemmings,com straddles that line well, offering just enough flash and just enough performance to keep things interesting, without being over-the-top in any area. It’s even sprayed in a tasteful, under-the-radar Dusk Pearl and India Ivory (its original livery), meaning that the occasional 327-cu.in. V-8-motivated burnout isn’t likely to draw too much unwanted attention. While neither an all-original museum piece nor a full-bore hot rod, this four-door wagon looks to be a nice weekend and car show cruiser. From the seller’s description:

1957 Chevrolet 210 Station Wagon. Restored 12 years ago and is still fresh looking. This car was made in Arizona for California delivery. Many years later it found it’s way to New England. It is a rust free body and just needed to be freshened up a bit. Well, we got carried away and did a complete body on restoration. Every bearing, bushing, etc. has been replaced. I should mention that this was a hot rod for many years. It had a 283 engine and a 4 speed transmission early on. It now has a fresh 327, early 60s vintage with the same Muncie 4 speed and the original rear end. It was repainted base coat clear coat in the same factory colors of Dusk Pearl and India Ivory. The interior was done in a 50s style and retains all the stock features of the 57, including the steering wheel and factory 4 way flashers. All of the tinted glass is the factory issue with all new weatherstripping.

This is a fun classis car that can be enjoyed by the whole gang. The family, the guys, another couple, etc. It’s been used for a prom, a wedding, and out to dinner many times with our teenagers. And it can be a mature gearhead’s excuse to grab a couple of gears. Can be driven cross country without hesitation.

This car was done as a labor of love and countless hours spent on details. We have driven it on a daily basis and it shows well. The engine has an RV cam and is healthy but not overstated. The tri-power Rochester 2 barrels are a nice look, and with the manual transmission, still gets 20 MPG. It rides, steers, etc. as a brand new 57 Chevy would. It currently has 14 inch Radir wheels under it and I have a set of 15 inch Rallye wheels for it as well. Your choice. I had fender skirts on it at the start and they will also be included.

What was that about the American car collector scene in England? While Bentleys dominated this past weekend’s Historics at Brooklands collector car auction at the Brooklands Museum, we did spot a couple of American cars of note among the cars that sold.

First is the 1968 Plymouth Fury III four-door sedan re-envisioned as a police car. Imported into England last year from California, where it was restored and converted into a police car, the sedan still uses its original two-barrel 383-cu.in. V-8 and TorqueFlite automatic transmission. Offered with no reserve, it sold for £7,056, or about $11,000.

Another four-door sedan, this 1956 Chevrolet 210 was originally built in New York for export to England, then returned to the United States at some point in its life, only to end up in England again in 1991. Still sporting its original interior, it gets its power from a 235-cu.in. six-cylinder turning through a three-speed manual transmission. It sold for £5,320, or about $8,290, on the low side of its pre-auction estimate of £5,000 to £8,000. According to Historics at Brooklands, British television presenter Helen Chamberlain bought it.

Neither the Plymouth or the Chevrolet broke the top 10 or bottom 10 of sales at Historics at Brooklands over the weekend. Included in the top 10 were a 1954 Bentley R-Type Coupé by Abbott of Farnham that sold for £112,000 (about $173,000); a 1933 Bentley 4-1/4 Litre Open Tourer by Vanden Plas that sold for £107,800 (about $167,000); a 1959 Jaguar XK150S Roadster that sold for £78,400 (about $121,000); a 1960 Bentley S2 Continental Flying Spur that sold for £69,440 (about $108,000); a 1971 Porsche 911S that sold for £59,360 (about $92,000); a 1935 Bentley 3-1/2 Litre Special Roadster that sold for £57,120 (about $88,000); a 1992 Bentley Continental Convertible that sold for £54,880 (about $85,000); a 1937 Bentley 4-1/4 Litre Sports Special that sold for £53,200 (about $82,000); a 1962 Jaguar E-Type Series I Roadster that sold for £43,680 (about $68,000); a 1965 Sunbeam Tiger FIA Appendix K Rally Car that sold for £38,080 (about $59,000); a 1964 Porsche 356SC that also sold for £38,080; and a 1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider that also sold for £38,080.

On the opposite end of the spectrum were a 1962 Austin Gipsy Chassis that sold for £168 (about $260); a 1997 Lada Hussar that sold for £448 (about $700); a 1935 Bentley Derby Bentley Saloon Body by Park Ward that sold for £896 (about $1,400); a 1985 Audi Quattro that sold for £1,344 (about $2,100); a 1956 Matchless 350cc that sold for £1,456 (about $2,300); a 1989 Volkswagen Golf GTi Convertible that sold for £2,016 (about $3,100); a 1984 Bentley Mulsanne Turbo that sold for £2,128 (about $3,300); a 1962 Jaguar 3.8 MkII Manual with overdrive that sold for £2,632 (about $4,100); a 1937 Frazer Nash/BMW restoration project that sold for £3,080 (about $4,800); and a 1957 Heinkel Trojan that sold for £3,136 (about $4,900).

With this 1956 Chevrolet 210 for sale on Hemmings.com, we have another one of those “blank canvas” cars. With no drivetrain and left in primer, it could be anything you want it to be: restored beauty, bracket racer, street machine, garage queen. What would you do with it? From the seller’s description:

While the seller of this 1954 Chevrolet for sale on Hemmings.com describes it as a Bel Air, the side trim identifies it as a 210, something we only point out for the sake of accuracy. We imagine this Chevrolet – recently awakened from a nearly 40-year-long slumber – would make the perfect driveable dream, in which case the trim level wouldn’t really matter at all, would it? From the seller’s description:

This car has been in storage since 1973. It starts and runs well. It does use a little oil. It has original 235 engine and three speed transmission. I drove this car at college and it served me well. It has some rust on the fenders from driving in the winter a few years.

Yes, yes, yes! I never thought I’d see the day when a shorty would come waltzing through the Hemmings.com classifieds, but we see it here, in this 1956 Chevrolet 210 station wagon. And to top it all off, it’s got a 327 in it and it rides on Keystones. Just install a chrome chain steering wheel, reupholster it in diamond-tufting, pop a Grand Funk 8-track, and it’ll be perfect. From the seller’s description:

PROJECT CAR—2 Dr Wagon,shortened wheelbase,327-300h.p,350 Turbo Auto,tilt,power seat,cloth split seat,hydralic tilt front end,Keystone Wheels,rides and drives anywhere! This is a PROJECT CAR–it can be driven and enjoyed but will need some floor repairs and cosmetic restoration!

Today begins America’s original muscle car auction presented by Mecum, which is getting a reputation for offering some of the rarest and highest quality cars of yesteryear.

From May 25 through May 29, the 19th annual Spring Classic will take place in Belvidere, Illinois. More than 1,000 cars are expected to cross the block and new cars are being added daily, according to Mecum officials.
Here are some of the more desirable cars up for auction:
A 1966 Shelby GT 350H, one of about 50 Ivy Green Hertz rent-a-cars and one of only three with factory stripe delete. This car has just 24,000 actual miles. Shunned for many years by serious collectors, these Hertz cars have really taken off in price as of late;
A 1955 Chevrolet 210 post featuring a body-off restoration and a new 454-cu.in., 600hp V-8. This is one beautiful resto-mod;
Another rare car up for auction is a 1970 GTO convertible, one of just 248 with a 455-cu.in. V-8 and automatic transmission. Mecum tell us this car comes with Pontiac Historical Services documentation as well as perfect floors and body panels;
For you Ford fans, there’s a 1969 Mustang Mach 1 with 52,000 actual miles and all new paint and sheetmetal work performed by Paul’s Automotive in Cincinnati, Ohio, a renowned Shelby/Mustang restorer. This car comes with a full Marti report, showing this is one of only two built with special options;
And for the Mopar masses, Mecum is offering a 1970 Dodge Charger, one of only 346 ever built with a 440 Six Pack engine. It comes with Galen Govier’s blessing, so it’s not a clone.

(This post originally appeared in the May 25, 2006, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)